Check valve



l1g 16, 1932- G. D. HOFFMAN CHECK VALVE Original Filed June 6, 1924 ,Zzvmr/ 620W lli/#mam WY@ I Fatented Aug. 16, 1932 GEORGE D. HOFFMAN, OF PASADENA, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR 'IO HOFFMAN SPECIALTY COMPANY, OF WATER-RUBY, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS canon varva y Original application led Tune 6, 1924, Serial No. 718,319. Patent No. 1,708,622. JDivided. and this application led .Tune 25, 1928. Serial No. 288,056.

The present invention relates to valves, with particular reference to a light easily movable check valve and to means for mounting such valve in relation to its seat and to the structure on which the seat is formed, so

that it may be rotated and rubbed on the seat to displace particles of dirt, etc. which would otherwise prevent tight closing of the valve.

The embodiment of the invention herein illustrated is shown in connection with an air valve for steam heating radiators, as a check to prevent entrance of air when a vacuum condition occurs in the radiator to which the valve is applied; but the scope in which I claim protection is not limited to this particular embodiment and use. The present application is a division of my applicaton Serial No. 718,319, tiled June 6, 1924, (on which Letters Patent N o. 1,708,622 were 2G granted on April 9, 1929) entitled Air relief and vacuum check valve for steam radiators, in which the present subject matter was originally claimed.

In the drawing herewith,-

Fig. 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a radiator valve in which the present invention is embodied;

Fig. 2 is a similar View on an enlarged scale of the check valve and a cap interenga ed therewith;

ig. 3 is a cross section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a. view similar to Fig. 2 showing a modiied form of associated check valve and cap.

Like reference characters designate the same parts wherever they occur in all the figures.

Describing now the article shown 1n the drawing, as one construction, representative of all, in which my invention may be embodied,.1 represents the casing of a radiator air valve having a nipple 2 for connection to the radiator and having at its upper end a block 3, forming the extremity of the valve casing, through which there is a vent passage 4. A valve 5 within .the casing, and operated by water in the casing, by tempera- 0 ture, and by pressure conditions, cooperates with a seat at the inner orifice of the vent passage 4 to release air from the radiator rigid under the pressures to which it is sub-1..

jected, but at the same time so light in weight as to be easily displaceable by fluid issuing from the vent passage at a pressure only slightly above that of the atmosphere. This valve closes against' a seat formed by the plane upper edge of a cylindrical rib 7 which surrounds the outer oriiice of the vent opening. Preferably the area surrounded by the rib is much larger than the area of the passage in order to expose so large an area of the valve to the pressure within the casing that a very low pressure will suffice to raise the valve and permit escape ofg. air from within the casing.

As here shown, the valve 6 is arranged in a horizontal plane and is seated by gravity, but itis within my contemplation to arrange it otherwise and provide other means to urge it toward its seat.

A cap 8 embraces the end of the block 3,

or, in other words, the extremity of the casing in which the vent passage is located, and loosely interlocks the valve with the casing, permittinA it to be opened and closed, and also per gitting it to be rotated by force applied to the cap. Interlock between the valve proper and the casing is provided by tongues 9 formed on the disk at opposite sides, which project through slots 10 formed in the walls of the cap, such slots being long enough to permit the necessary movement of the valve in opening and closing, and the tongues being long enough to permit grasping by the fingers of an attendant. The loose interlock between the cap and the block 3 is provided by an indented zone 11 of the cap which is offset into a groove 12 surrounding the block.

The cap may be rotated by grasping and turning it between the thumb and finger or between the two hands of an attendant, and the valve is rotated at the same time through its tongues 9. Thus the valve is rubbed over the surface of its seat, wiping the seat andwv removing loose particles which may have lodged thereon. The attendant may at such times grasp the protruding `tongues of the valve and press the latter against the seat,

thus exerting a stronger pressure while ro tating the valve than is caused by the weight of the valve or other seating agency.

Instead of making the valve and cap structurally separate, they may be combined or associated in a unitary structure, as shown in Fig. 4 where the end wall 13 of the cap constitutes also a valve disk cooperating with the seat 7, and the sides of such cap embrace the block or casing extremity 3 and interlocked by an olset 'zone entering in the groove 12a. In this case, however, the groove is enough wider than the oiset zone to permit rise of the entire combined valve and cap structure under pressure of escaping Huid. Slots 10a, corres onding to the slots 10 previously described, permit discharge of the escaping fluid.

The same principles may be embodied in other structures diiierently arranged for other specific purposes, all within the scope of the protection which I claim for this invention.

What 'I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A casing having a vent passage provided with an outwardly facing valve seat, an associated check valve, cooperative with said seat to exclude external fluid' from the casing, and a cap loosely interlockedwith the casin to permit rotation relatively to the seat, an engaged with the check valve to impart rotation thereto while permitting independent movement thereof toward and away from the valve seat. w

2. A casing having an extremity containing a vent passage and provided with a seating lip substantially greater in circumference than the passage, a check valve arranged to seat against said lip, and a locking means em bracing said extremity loosely interlocked therewith and associated with the check valve in a manner to cause rotation of the valveon the lip by external force application on said locking means, and to permit independent ing a vented extremity, a seat surrounding the orifice of the Vent therein and Isurrounding a substantially larger area than that of the vent, a cap rotatably engaged with said casing embracing the extremity, and a valve arranged across said seat and loosely interlocked with said cap in a manner to receive rotation from the cap coaxially of the seat and to be moved independently thereof toward and away from said seat.

5. In'a radiator check valve, a casing having a vent passage, an external check valve of light weight arranged to seat across said passage and impelled only by gravity and at mospheric pressure toward its seat to exclude the outer air, and a cap rotatably engaged with said casing and having slots, said check valve being a disk formed with projections extending through said slots.

6. In a radiator valve, a casing having a vent passage, a cap rotatably connected to the casing and embracing said passage, and a check device arranged to seat across the vent passage within the cap; the cap and check device having interlocking means for transmitting rotary movement from the former to the latter while permitting opening and clos ing movement of the latter.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

GEORGE D. HOFFMAN.

movement of the valve toward and from the h i Aand associated with said valve in a manner to transmit rotation thereto coaxially of said y seat, and permit independent' opening and closing movement thereof.

4. In combination with a valve casing hav- 

